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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27179650">Regrets</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/CinnamonRoll123/pseuds/CinnamonRoll123'>CinnamonRoll123</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Akeryu <3 [16]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Persona 5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Betrayal, M/M, Traitor Ryuji</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 02:47:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,096</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27179650</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/CinnamonRoll123/pseuds/CinnamonRoll123</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The Phantom Thieves finding out that Ryuji's betrayed them, and their regrets.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Akechi Goro/Sakamoto Ryuji, barely mentioned tho - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Akeryu <3 [16]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1656841</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>40</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Regrets</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Morgana believed in tough love with Ryuji. His skull was so thick he needed violent reinforcement to get info in. it wasn’t his fault that Ryuji was so stupid and so bad at everything. And since Ryuji was so thick, the jokes he made would bounce off his head easily.</p>
<p>It didn’t matter that Ryuji clearly got upset and fought back, only for everyone else to shoot him down. The rest agreed with Morgana, so he could do what he wanted. He hadn’t done anything wrong.</p>
<p>He…hated it when Ryuji would fight back though, getting upset at his words. And everyone would defend him to the grave. Maybe…maybe Morgana was being hypocritical.</p>
<p>Nonsense. Everything Ryuji said in the recording was fake! And exaggerated! Right?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Ann believed her and Ryuji were friends. Maybe not the closest out of the group, Ryuji and Akira were always glued to each other’s side, she knew that. But they had known each other since middle school, so she knew him very well…right? They had been through difficult times together, right? Sure, she hadn’t been the best to him during the Kamoshida thing, maybe steering clear of him because of the rumours but there weren’t any hard feelings. And the teasing wasn’t anything serious. Just joking. Ryuji knew that…right?</p>
<p>No. She was kidding herself. For the first time, Ann truly felt guilty for what she did. All those times she could’ve reached out to help-she didn’t because she was a coward. All those “jokes” she made, in an attempt to seem cooler and funnier than she was at Ryuji’s expense were hurtful. Ann knew how much words could hurt so why’d she do it?</p>
<p>Ryuji was just an easy target. And now he’d betrayed them. With Akechi.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yusuke…wasn’t the closest with Ryuji, he knew that. Something about his loud, brash personality just rubbed Yusuke the wrong way. However, Ryuji would not leave him alone, constantly asking to eat out together. It irritated Yusuke. He didn’t need Ryuji’s pity, and he didn’t need his company. Someone like Ryuji, coarse, dirty and <em>ugly</em>, could never get along with someone refined like himself.</p>
<p>So he simply refused every offer every single time, not even flinching when Ryuji would droop in response.</p>
<p>And sure, he made comments about Ryuji’s appearance, but he was an artist. Artists had to see beauty and ugliness. Pointing it out was his job.</p>
<p>Hearing Ryuji complain about him to Akechi was a complete shock to Yusuke. Listening to his own words made them sound…crueller than he thought. Thinking about it, Ryuji had stopped asking him to hang out a long time ago. He should’ve known.</p>
<p>But he couldn’t take back his words now.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Makoto knew she would never truly like Ryuji. He was a troublemaker, and she was the student council president. Two complete opposites. She was smart, he was dumb. It was just the truth. And everyone laughed when she joked about Ryuji’s lack of intelligence. So that meant it was true and she could keep doing it.</p>
<p>Calling him useless in the Metaverse wasn’t bad either! He just needed to…fix his performance. He was behind the rest of the group, everyone knew that! It didn’t matter that Ryuji always had the same look on his face when she joked, smiling but still somehow looking like a kicked puppy. He found it funny too…didn't he?</p>
<p>Now that she really thought about it, he had been trying really hard with his studies and Metaverse work. His grades had improved a bit and his persona was as strong as ever. Maybe she was too harsh on him?</p>
<p>Having to listen to Ryuji cry about her words hurt. But she couldn’t do anything now.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Futaba was a tiny bit afraid of Ryuji when they met. He was so…loud and she wanted calm. Someone like Akira was good for her. So when she started to get a bit more comfortable, she joked about Ryuji. About him never finding a girlfriend, being stupid, being clumsy, sucking at Metaverse stuff and so on. It was light-hearted, and a way of her telling him to shut up a little. And he would, so that was what she wanted.</p>
<p>It wasn’t <em>her </em>fault he didn’t fit in with the rest.</p>
<p>His fault for being too loud, too friendly and just too…Ryuji to fit in. Also, he was good at taking jokes. Or so she thought.</p>
<p>She should’ve suspected him sooner. He was being quieter at meetings, only talking to say something smarter than usual and then watch everyone else. Maybe he was smarter than he let on. They were played like fools.</p>
<p>But Futaba could only listen to the recording she had gotten, regretting every single word she had said to him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Haru was always too nice to people. That’s what everyone said. She was too polite, too kind, too quiet, just a perfect heiress. The Phantom Thieves helped her get out of her shell and become a better person. Everyone but Ryuji. Their personalities clashed. She was the refined heiress of a multi-million dollar company, and he was a thug, rough and violent.</p>
<p>Every time he offered to help with her plants, she would grimace slightly, slap on a fake smile and refuse his help politely. In private, she confessed to everyone that he was “too violent” for plants and she didn’t want to spend time with him.</p>
<p>What she didn’t notice was him walking up behind her to say hi.</p>
<p>He heard everything she said, and after that stopped asking to help. She felt relieved, but with somewhat of a bad taste in her mouth. But it didn’t matter. Ryuji was just too dense to fully be offended about a true statement.</p>
<p>Although every time he spoke to her, he would lower his voice slightly and attempt to speak with more class. And when she was off once, someone took care of her plants. Akira took credit, but people around claimed they saw a blond boy water the plants for her.</p>
<p>She just hadn’t noticed how considerate Ryuji was. But it was too late for her to apologise.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was too late for all of them. And one of their strongest allies, someone who was willing to do anything and cared <em>so much </em>about them was now gone. They had abused him so hard he turned to a traitor for help.</p>
<p>Futaba stopped playing the recording, a heavy silence falling upon the thieves. They were mourning, not only for their dead leader but their “friend” too.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Uh...it's been a few months. Sorry, I've not been that well and I'm still not but I felt motivated and wrote this! Thank you for reading :)</p></blockquote></div></div>
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